Stella D'oro Cream Puffs.. Common to Elegant

Another recipe from the recipe card vault. I remember doing these many times in my childhood, they are almost like a dessert appetizer! A fun, easy dessert for informal gatherings.

1 package Stella D'oro Anginetti Cookies

1 cup prepared whipped topping

3 ounces cream cheese

6 ounces crushed pineapple, drained.

Slice the tops off the cookies. With an electric mixer, beat whipped topping and cream cheese until mixture is smooth, stir in the pineapple, if the mixture seems a little thick, add a little heavy cream or half and half to it. Drop filling into cookies, replace the top and refrigerate for 1 hour, then serve and enjoy!

3 bags of cookies, 2 cups of whipped toppings, 12 ounces of pineapple and 8 ounces of cream cheese makes 2 trays of this fun dessert!

If you want to make this dessert, more classy or for a more formal gathering like a wedding shower or a baby shower comes to mind, all you need to do is mix together the cream cheese and whipped topping. Add a little drizzle of heavy cream into the mix while beating it to smooth it out and make it slightly more decadent and luscious. omit the pineapple chunks but set to the side. Split the cookies in half, using a pastry bag, pipe the mixture into the middle, THEN, one by one, remember this is a special occasion... put a chunk of pineapple in each cookie. Replace the top, and drizzle chocolate ganache over the top. If you wanted to even be a little more creative, after putting the chocolate ganache on top.. have some dried, candied pineapple, crush it and sprinkle it over the top. I will post a ganache/drizzle recipe tomorrow. All that separates a common dessert from turning it into a elegant dessert are 2 things: quality of ingredients and presentation. If you have one of those 2 tierd or 3 tierd cake plates, I would put this out on that, or arrange them on a oblong tray with maybe 1 or 2 other desserts. OR if you wanted to go to the limit, fore go the cookies and make your own baby cream puffs.. how special is that? Cream puffs are thee easiest thing on the planet to make, and a recipe is included in the dessert section of this blog. I know making cream puffs sort of defies the original recipe, OR really impress and make Anginetti cookies from scratch, which again i have provided a recipe. Desserts need to be special irregardless of the occasion in my opinion because they are the last impression people have of the evening. I am now getting off my culinary dessert high horse and going to bed. Bon Nuit!

Dump Cake and Lil' Musings

Easy, breezy, 1, 2 threezy.. you will have this dessert together in no time. You do need whip cream or Vanilla Ice cream, or your Ice Cream of choice to cut back on the sweetness. As my mom states here in her cookbook, this is a very "rich" dessert. I must say, this is the section of the whole blog, along with the family memories and recipes that has my heart attached to it. I can think of nothing more gratifying than standing in a kitchen playing mad scientist with sugar and other sweet things to make a dessert that brings smiles to everyone. It is truly one of my greater joys in life!


2 cans of Fruit Cocktail or 1 REALLY LARGE can of Fruit Cocktail. You can also use Pie Filling too.

1 box white cake mix or yellow cake mix

1 stick of butter (sliced)

1 cup chopped nuts (I prefer pecans for this one)

Pour can(s) of fruit into a 9x13 pan. Spread dry cake mix over fruit filling. Spread nuts over cake mix. Put sliced butter, arranging it all over the top of the dessert, if you have to use a little extra, go ahead, I'll never tell! (wink) Bake at 350 degrees for 1 or 1 1/2 hours till the top is golden brown and the fruit beneath is bubbly.